The Nhlangwini Integrated Rural Development Project aims to empower local people, in order that they may improve their quality of life, by helping them develop strategies for addressing basic needs. The Nhlangwini Ward is situated in southern KwaZulu, South Africa. Three workshops were held over a period of three months during 1989. The first examined development problems in the area; the second specifically probed those problems associated with family planning; the third was a development planning workshop, employing visual techniques described in some detail by the paper. Participants were asked to draw local resources by imagining they could view the area from a helicopter. The process of adopting visual techniques has resulted in a change in emphasis - as a result of findings, the integrated development programme has switched approaches with regard to issues facing women, and in terms of its goal setting mechanisms.
In October 1992, IIED conducted a PRA Training session for PATECORE and its partners, whose approach to land use management is widely known for its innovation and success. They operate in the Bam Province, Burkina Faso. This paper is a brief note, concerning the introduction of certain elements of PRA into their activities, notably network mapping and venn diagrams.
A pilot course on project identification was run for 24 heads of local government departments in several states in Northern Nigeria. The first course was based on fieldwork and focussed on applying RRA techniques for the purpose of project identification. This report evaluates the training programme from a methodological perspective, pointing out mistakes that were made, such as using a questionnaire instead of a checklist. The analysis also shows the importance of working out participants' specific training needs and developing a model to meet these. PRA activities are not described, but some findings are given
This manual "is designed to provide ideas on how to learn from and with rural women (and men!)". Its aim is to convince the readers of the need to consider gender and environmental issues in the planning, implementation and M&E of any development activity. The introduction reviews the general issues. Section 2 is a set of guide-lines on communication, learning and analysis of techniques for use in investigating local natural resources issues with rural women. These techniques are largely drawn from the RRA repertoire but their specific application to gender and the environment makes this volume more than 'just another RRA manual'. There are useful boxed examples of the use of various techniques and a list of books and organisations which offer more information on the subject. Section 3 comprises a number of illustrative case studies by groups of rural women. Section 4 describes some simple techniques which have been applied in conservation projects and case studies of how groups of rural women have used these ideas.
A brief history of soil and water conservation and harvesting work worldwide concludes that it has been too dominated by external ideas and intervention and it has often been ineffective or harmful. Two new approaches, Rapid Catchment Analysis in Kenya and the work of the Aga Khan Rural Support Programme in India, are introduced as ways in which external institutions can provide more effective support for locally run processes. The steps involved are described in some detail. Performance indicators and the role of support institutions are also described. The report ends with five guidelines to be considered by external support institutions for effective environmental care.
Article focuses on the lowest-income groups of Khartoum and their struggle to find shelter in the city. After giving an overview of housing conditions and the ways in which poorer groups find accommodation, the author describes the legal and illegal housing submarkets. He argues that understanding these is essential in order to change housing and living conditions. Discussion then turns to government attitudes toward housing problems, and the description of the development of two low-income housing areas in Khartoum. Very little emphasis is placed on participation and nowhere is PRA or RRA methodology mentioned. In the conclusions, the author states that community participation is a realistic alternative to current policies, and that low-income groups have used it successfully for a long time. The author argues that limited public resources could be best put toward supporting community-based organisations who work to improve infrastructure and basic services.
This paper provides a brief account of a participatory methodology used in the development of land and resource use plans in Tanzania's rift valley. In recent years population pressure has led to increasing land and resource use conflict between the three groups - agriculturalists, pastoralists and hunter-gatherers - who inhabit the area. A participatory approach was used to provide an understanding of the complex issues involved and to build trust and cooperation between the different groups. Mapping, transects, seasonal diagramming, semi-structured and open interviewing were used in the process of involving stakeholder groups in developing land and resource use plans for their village territory.
The document is in three parts. Part I reviews some definitions and concepts of participation in situation analysis and planning. Some field experiences with more-or-less rapid approaches to planning, including monitoring and evaluation, are presented and the difficulties and responsibilities which these entail are discussed. A number of recommendations are made regarding methods which can be used during different stages of the planning process, and regarding training in participatory methods. In Part II the methods used and their purpose in participatory planning are briefly described. Reference is also made to field experiences with these methods. Part III consists of an annotated bibliography, of which the main part is devoted to works on participatory planning with pastoralists, with a smaller sample of general works on PRA methods. The abstracts highlight the methods related to participatory planning. Finally, further information on relevant contact organizations and periodical sources of information are provided in the Annexes.
This paper is a critique of conventional (FAO) approaches and practices in land use planning in the Sahelian zone of Africa. The need for land use planning in Africa (particularly the Sahel) is outlined in the first section. The second section describes the evolution of land use planning systems, and the process involved in conventional systems. The fourth section discusses problems with the application of land use planning in Africa, the main critiques being the weakness of a hard systems/top-down approach. these are contrasted with the value of a soft systems/insiders' view approach. The fifth section outlines the principles for participatory land use planning (PLUP), that it: produce advice for farmers in a short space of time, which is easy to understand, and which is widely applicable to varying communities in the Sahel. PLUP should be based primarily on local needs, involving land users in the whole planning process, and providing advice which is not prescriptive but facilitative, and which solves specific problems. PLUP should strengthen village level capacities for land resource analysis and structures for management, combining top-down and grassroots information. Suitable advice should be given in a non-prescriptive way, and feedback and monitoring mechanisms should be established. The final section discusses alternatives to conventional/FAO LUP, and a tentative framework for PLUP is outlined.